Twenty-year-old Kareem sat before a Shaykh in the neighborhood mosque after listening to his touching speech about the sweetness of worship. The following dialogue took place between them:Kareem: As-Salaamu ‘Alaykum, How are you Shaykh? May I talk to you for a short time?Shaykh: Wa ‘alaykum as-salaamu wa rahmatullaahi wa Barakaatuh. Welcome dear brother, yes of course you can. Go ahead!Kareem: I have heard many callers to Allaah speak about the rank of loving Allaah The Almighty and that it is among the highest ranks.Shaykh: Yes, indeed, they have told the truth. It is a rank that people compete to reach and exert great efforts for that, and it is the food of the hearts.Kareem: Yes, by Allaah, whoever tastes this will know that for sure. However, I want to reach a rank that is higher than that. I hope that Allaah The Almighty loves me and showers me with His Mercy.Shaykh: Ma shaa’ Allaah. You please me so much with your aspiration and love for your Lord. The rank which you seek was mentioned by Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allaah have mercy upon him, in his commentary on the verse in which Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {Allaah will love you and forgive you your sins.} [Quran 3:31] “Being beloved by Allaah is higher than loving Allaah. It is not loving Allaah that matters, rather, it is being loved by Allaah.” Performing voluntary acts of worship after performing the obligatory acts is one of the ways to reach this hoped-for goal and this precious aim.

Body and soul

Allaah The Almighty created man from body and soul and made for each one of them its sustenance that enables it to be sound and continue to prosper. As we talk about the soul, it is important to know that Allaah The Almighty made many acts of worship permanent and renewable resources for the provision that the soul needs to be purified and to rise above the shackles of sins and the boundaries of the earth. Each act of worship has a different effect from the other; they complete each other and cover all aspects of man’s life especially the life of the youth which is filled with energy, strength and vitality.
Among these acts of worship, there is a great act of worship beloved by the Most-Merciful. It is the foundation of the edifice of faith. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, repeatedly said about it: “Relieve us with it, O Bilaal!” It is prayer which is rest for the self from the worries of life. If we had talked before about the need of the youth to worship, prayer is a renewable source for spiritual power. Its timings are distributed throughout the day and night to provide continuous and renewed sustenance. While praying, the person throws away the hardships of life to stand submissively and humbly before Allaah The Almighty. He kneels down, prostrates himself, recites and listens to the Quran, glorifies and sanctifies Allaah, seeks His Forgiveness and supplicates Him. Prayer is like an ascension of our souls to Allaah The Almighty; far away from the attractions of the earth and the temptations of life. Which need to worship does prayer fulfill?

Prayer disciplines:

The emptiness of the souls due to their deprivation from the effect of prayer makes them go astray and makes them thirsty to worship Allaah The Almighty, who made the observance of prayer and its timings a serious matter that greatly contributes to quenching the thirst of the youth who need worship. Moreover, it imbues the life of the youth with seriousness and punctuality. Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {Indeed, prayer has been decreed upon the believers a decree of specified times.} [Quran 4:103]
Observing these times will result in an important feature of seriousness in the life of the youth especially in the stage of adolescence.

Voluntary prayers:

After perfecting the obligatory prayers which are considered the basis of the building, we move to talk about voluntary prayers which elevate the person in degrees of perfection. Any youth who performs obligatory prayers walks in the way of success. However, the person who performs voluntary prayers is more successful and of a higher degree than him. Here is another feature of prayer because it disciplines the person to seek perfection and master the work to reach the best state. When the person performs the obligatory prayer, he knows that it is not free from defects so he seeks to perfect it by performing voluntary prayers to make up for any shortcomings in his obligatory prayers. Consequently, keenness on performing voluntary prayers is engraved on the heart and mind of the youth; a keenness to reach the highest degrees.
The best evidence:
The best evidence for what is mentioned is that Allaah The Almighty told us about and clarified that whoever does voluntary acts of worship reaches a higher and more elevated degree and rank than the person who does not offer more than the obligatory acts of worship. The person who perfectly performs the obligatory acts of worship loves Allaah The Almighty; whereas the person who further performs voluntary acts of worship is beloved by Allaah. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Allaah The Almighty Says, ‘…And the most beloved thing with which My slave comes nearer to Me is performing what I made obligatory upon him; and My slave keeps on coming closer to Me through performing voluntary deeds (prayer or doing extra deeds besides what is obligatory) until I Love him. When I Love him I Become his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes, and his leg with which he walks; and if he asks (something) from Me, I Give him, and if he asks My Protection, I Protect him.’” [Al-Bukhaari]